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2006

Encouraging Results Registered in Ensuring Women's Participation in National Dev't
November 4, 2006 - (The Ethiopian Herald) An official of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said encouraging results have been registered towards strengthening the role of women in national development owing to the government's due attention to gender equality.

Ethiopian women are most abused
October 11, 2006 - (BBC News) Women in Ethiopia are most likely to suffer violence at the hands of their partners, says the United Nations. Nearly 60% of Ethiopian women were subjected to sexual violence, including marital rape, according to the Ending Violence Against Women report. Almost half of all Zambian women said they had been attacked by a partner.

Women Return to Fight a New War
October 2, 2006 - (PANOS) Sisay Abebe Belaynesh Adugna was 12 when she joined Tigrayan guerillas to escape a child marriage. Pledged to her husband at the age of seven, Adugna's wedding took place in a small town in Tigray, the northern Ethiopian province that was the theatre of a fierce 17-year-conflict between government soldiers loyal to the dictator Mengistu Haile Mariam and the rebel Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF).

Opdo Striving to Realize Women's Benefits, Rights
September 27, 2006 - (The Ethiopian Herald) OPDO is working with special attention to the realization of the efforts its efforts underway to ensure the rights of women, an Executive Committee member of the OPDO said.

Ethiopia: Girls' Primary School Enrolment Reaches 77 Per Cent in SNNPS
June 18, 2006 -(The Ethiopian Herald) Primary school enrolment of girls in the SNNPS has reached 77 per cent, the State Education Bureau said. Bureau Head Redwan Hussen told WIC Thursday that the increase in the enrolment of female students is due to affirmative actions taken to motivate women and expansion of educational provisions.

Network Urges Women to Provide Transformative Leadership
May 17, 2006 -(The Ethiopian Herald) A Regional Network of Women for Greater East Africa, Women Direct, has urged women to actively involve in providing transformative leadership.

Ethiopia: How to stop violence against girls in Africa?
May 11, 2006 -(ICRC News) The ICRC is taking part in a two-day conference in Addis Ababa entitled Violence against Girls in Africa.

2005

Ethiopia: Domestic violence rampant, says UNFPA
October 12, 2005 (IRIN) - Domestic violence is so rampant in Ethiopia that nine out of ten women think their husbands are justified in beating them, a UN report released on Wednesday said.

Some 9,000 Affected By Fistula Each Year
September 7, 2005 – (The Daily Monitor) Around 9,000 mothers are affected by fistula each year in Ethiopia, said Dr. Tewodros G/Michael, Deputy Director of Engender Health Ethiopia yesterday.

Djibouti: Women fight mutilation
Jul 12, 2005 (IRIN) - For thousands of years, girls in the area that is now the tiny African country of Djibouti, have been subjected to pharaonic circumcision.

Some 50,000 Women to Train On Rights
July 3, 2005 – (The Daily Monitor) African Initiative for Democratic World Order is to train 50,000 women in Addis Ababa and Dire Dawa cities on women rights, it was disclosed.

15 Women Candidates to Vie for HPs, State Council Seats
July 1, 2005 – (The Ethiopian Herald) The National Electoral Board of Ethiopia (NEBE) announced that 15 women party and independent candidates will contest in the upcoming (August) elections in the Somali State.

Initiative: Ethiopia: Abduction and Rape--Law Reform and the Case of Woineshet Zebene Negash
June 2005 - (Equality Now) On 9 May 2005 the new Ethiopian Penal Code finally came into effect, which removed the marital exemption for abduction and rape. Both abduction and rape are criminal offences under Ethiopian law, but Articles 558 and 599 of the 1957 Ethiopian Penal Code had provided that in the event of subsequent marriage to his victim, the perpetrator was exempt from criminal responsibility for these crimes. Equality Now launched its campaign in March 2002, calling on the Ethiopian Government to comply with the sex equality provisions of its own Constitution and international law by abolishing this legal exemption.

"No Go" Zones to Prevent Sex Abuse by U.N. Peacekeepers
April 4, 2005 - (IPS) As charges mount of sexual abuse and child molestation by U.N. peacekeepers, the Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO) has drawn up a list of "no go" zones barring visits by blue-helmeted soldiers and civilian staff.

Fighting female circumcision at local level
February 16, 2005 - (Irinnews) The women had gathered at a school near Dukem Town, 35 km east of the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, to wait for the leader of a local NGO that is working with the Inter-African Committee, a pan-African NGO dedicated to fighting female genital mutilation (FGM).

2004

Ethiopia: Ruling Party Wants More Women in Parliament
October 29, 2004 (IRIN) - Ethiopia's ruling party is imposing female quotas on candidates in a bid to have more women in parliament, officials said on Friday. Women are guaranteed up to 30 percent of seats in the national elections for the incumbent Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF).

Ethiopia: Forced marriages ruining lives of rural girls in Arsi
September 14, 2004 - (IRIN) Chaltu Jeylu will never forget the day she was 'married.' As the 13-year-old made her way to school, her would-be suitor and 14 of his friends dragged her off the road. Forcibly married for two months, she suffered repeated rape.

ETHIOPIA RATIFIES PROTOCOL
June 10 - (Pambazuka) Almost a year after its adoption of the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa on July 11 2003, Maputo Mozambique, The Republic of Ethiopia on June 2, 2004 joined the Comoros to become the second country that has signed and ratified it. Twenty-seven other member states have signed it but are yet to ratify it as at June 7, 2004 . 13 more countries must ratify it in order for the Protocol to come into force.

ETHIOPIAN RAPE VICTIM PITS LAW AGAINST CULTURE
June 7, 2004 – (Washington Post) She rushed through the tangled brush of onion farms and up the knobby footpaths of her village. Her shirt was bloody, her clothes were torn and her thighs were bruised a deep shade of purple, recalled the villagers who were drawn by her screams.
Woineshet Zebene Negash, with a round face and a puff of thick brown hair, was running from her rapist.

IRIN INTERVIEW WITH ANTI-FGM ACTIVIST BERHANE RAS-WORK
February 9, 2004 – (UN Integrated Regional Information Networks) Berhane Ras-Work, the president of the Inter-African Committee (IAC), has waged a 20-year war against harmful traditional practices like female genital mutilation (FGM), to which millions of African women are being subjected. Here, in an interview with IRIN, held in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa on 6 February, she challenges governments and the African Union (AU) to play a more vigorous role in the fight against FGM and towards helping to eradicate it by 2010.

AFRICA: CONFERENCE DELEGATES IN ETHIOPIA CALL FOR END TO FGM
February 6, 2004 - (UN Integrated Regional Information Networks) African governments faced renewed demands on Friday to introduce and enforce tough laws to stamp out female genital mutilation (FGM) and protect the women of their countries. Leading health and human rights experts on the continent called for legislation to end the practice to which 2 million African women and girls in 28 countries are subjected every year.

HEALTH-ETHIOPIA: WHEN CHILD BRIDES BECOME SOCIAL OUTCASTS
February 4, 2004 – (IPS/GIN) Meseret, from the Lalibela district in northern Ethiopia, was only 13 when she became pregnant. Married at 12, her underdeveloped body was not ready for the stress of giving birth. After six days of gruelling labour her child was finally born, but it was dead.


2003

UNICEF LAUNCHES STATE OF THE WORLD'S CHILDREN 2004 REPORT
December 12, 2003 – (Addis Tribune - Addis Ababa) The State of the World's Children 2004 Report "Girls, Education and Development" was launched yesterday at the Sheraton Addis by the Minister of Education, Genet Zewde, and the UNICEF representative, Bjorn, Ljungqvist.

UNICEF REPORT HIGHLIGHTS PLIGHT OF GIRLS
December 11, 2003 – (IRIN) Ethiopia is one of the worst places on earth to be born a girl, according to a new report by the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF).

DUTCH GOV'T FUNDING TO PROMOTE GIRLS' EDUCATION
December 10, 2003 - (IRIN) The Dutch government has donated US $3.4 million to promote girls’ education in Ethiopia under a programme launched by the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF).

INTERVIEW WITH MEAZA ASHENAFI, HEAD OF WOMEN LAWYERS ASSOCIATION
November 7, 2003 – (IRIN Interview) Meaza Ashenafi founded the Ethiopian Women Lawyers Association (EWLA) in 1995, of which she is still the executive director.

FM RADIO PROGRAMME FOR WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS SOON
October 17, 2003 - (Addis Tribune - Addis Ababa) A radio programme entitled "Women in the Business Arena" will soon be broadcast on FM Addis 97.1 radio.The main objective of the 20-minute weekly programme in Amharic is to sensitize women entrepreneurs about business opportunities and serve as a forum to exchange views among members of the women business community, it was learnt.
The programme is initiated by Teferra Promotion and Entertainment Plc in accordance with a study conducted jointly by the Women's Affairs Department of the Ministry of Trade and the International Labour Organization.(ILO) on the "factors affecting women entrepreneurs in Ethiopia" From: http://allafrica.com/stories/200310170760.html

CIRCUMCISION ABANDONED TO PREVENT HIV INFECTION
October 16, 2003 - (IRIN) In an effort to curb the spread of HIV/AIDS, some 350 practitioners of ritual circumcision in Ethiopia's Gonder region have agreed to abandon the practice, as well as other forms of genital mutilation. This follows a warning by local health officials that the HIV/AIDS pandemic was aggravated by such traditional practices, often as a result of instruments not being sterilised. The head of one of the region's social services centres, Abebaw Gegit, was quoted by the Ethiopian News Agency (ENA) as saying: "The circumcisers and those engaged in harmful traditional practices have decided to abandon them after intensive sensitisation work by health officers." Preparations are currently underway to provide loans for those abandoning the practice, to help them find alternative ways of making a living.

WOMEN ACTIVISTS WIN CONTINENT'S ”NOBEL PRIZE”
October 11, 2003 - (IPS) Two tireless women's rights champions, Maeza Ashenafi from Ethiopia and Sara Longwe from Zambia, were awarded the 15th annual Africa Prize for Leadership, often referred to as the ”Nobel Prize for Africa”, in a ceremony Saturday in New York.

ETHIOPIAN GIRLS DRIVEN TO PROSTITUTION
September 8, 2003 – (BBC) Everyday about 10,000 people pass through the cross-country bus station in the Ethiopian capital to visit relatives, do business or simply search for a better life. And it is at the bus station where many young girls get drawn into prostitution.

ETHIOPIAN FAMINE STRAINS WOMEN, CHILDREN
August 21, 2003 - (AFP) Despite international efforts to avert more suffering caused by food shortages in Ethiopia, women and children are still dying of malnutrition and diseases.

ETHIOPIA IS ONE OF WORLD'S WORST COUNTRIES FOR MOTHERS
May 7, 2003 – (IRIN) Ethiopia is one of the worst countries in the world to be a mother, according to a global study by the NGO, Save the Children. Only Niger and Burkina Faso are ranked worse, according to the annual 'Mothers Index' report released on Tuesday.

DROUGHT IN ETHIOPIA EXPOSING WOMEN TO ABUSE, SAYS UNICEF
March 19, 2003 - (IRIN) Fears are growing that women and girls could be subjected to sexual abuse after being forced from their homes because of the drought currently gripping Ethiopia, the UN said on Wednesday.

UNICEF HOLDS FORUM ON SEXUAL ABUSE, EXPLOITATION IN ETHIOPIA
March 14, 2003 – (UN Wire) UNICEF opened a two-day conference yesterday aimed at stopping the sexual abuse of women and children in Ethiopia, where a humanitarian crisis has heightened their vulnerability to sexual exploitation.

UNICEF HOSTS PREVENTION OF SEXUAL ABUSE AND EXPLOITATION WORKSHOP
March 13, 2003 – (UNICEF-Press Release) UNICEF today is kicking off a two-day workshop to create awareness on how to stop sexual abuse of children and women in Ethiopia in a humanitarian crisis and prevent their increased risk of exposure to HIV/AIDS as a result of such exploitation.

MOE AND UNICEF HOST WORKSHOP TO PROMOTE GIRLS' EDUCATION
February 18, 2003 – (UNICEF Press Release) The Ministry of Education (MOE) and UNICEF are kicking off a workshop today to develop innovative strategies and an action plan to promote girls' education in five regions that have wide gender gaps and low girls' school enrolment rates.

UN, OTHERS TO DISCUSS GENITAL MUTILATION NEXT MONTH IN ETHIOPIA
January 8, 2003 – (UN Wire) The African Union, the U.N. Economic Commission for Africa and other U.N. agencies will be represented at an international conference on female genital mutilation next month in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

2002

PORN SCANDAL ROCKS ERITREAN PEACE FORCE: THE UN FORCE IS KEEPING THE PEACE WITH ETHIOPIA
December 20, 2002 – (BBC) A sex scandal has again troubled the United Nations peacekeeping mission to Eritrea and Ethiopia (UNMEE).

CALL FOR STRONGER WOMEN'S ROLE IN CONFLICT RESOLUTION
November 25, 2002 - (IRIN) Women must play a pivotal role in bringing an end to wars that have ravaged the Horn of Africa, Ethiopia's minister for women said on Monday. Gifty Abasiya, Minister of State in Charge of Women's Affairs in the Prime Minister's Office, pointed out that the victims of war were women and children. She was speaking at a conference sponsored by the regional Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD) on Conflict Early Warning and Response Mechanism (CEWARN).

CALL FOR STRONGER WOMEN'S ROLE IN CONFLICT RESOLUTION IN ETHIOPIA
November 25, 2002 - (IRIN) Women must play a pivotal role in bringing an end to wars that have ravaged the Horn of Africa, Ethiopia’s minister for women said on Monday.

FOCUS ON TRAFFICKING IN WOMEN
October 14, 2002 – (IRIN) Almost daily a steady stream of young girls queue at the check in of Addis Ababa international airport - destined for the Middle East.

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